I seldom have time to read fiction (looking at the magazines and nonfiction that I obtain for the old soldiers' home is time consuming) but for some reason that I can't remember ordered this book (must have seen a favorable review) from the library.
To me it is very dark and I find the epilogue to be a sell out.
The protagonist is interesting. He is trying to escape their upstate NY city by obtaining a full ride scholarship on the basis of his football skills on defense and hard work to obtain good marks. His family (and a fair number of classmates) are members of a White supremacist church and I find it interesting to see how such people think (assuming the author is offering authenticity). The chapters are very short and their titles ominous, so far counting down from T-Minus Ten. There are a lot of characters introduced and Mr. Zentner is adept with his plot complications.
The protagonist has thought out his own views and is trying to hew to the straight and narrow. I am surprised that there is so much resentment at their life being so straightened economically, but I suspect that it is the difference between having the ready to pay the utilities and keep food in the house (as my parents did) and barely being able to do so. We readers learn a lot about how the family got into the jackpot where they are today. Even though they profess abhorrent views, we can see how they got there, and how they muddle through. I suspect these are the people who elected Mr. Trump. The protagonist is better than that and striving, so I hope he will blow town forever, attend an Ivy League college (he has offers pending), and overcome his past. Still, this is very dark and I do not much care for it.
(I have considerable experience working with small groups of sixteen and seventeen year olds on an ad hoc basis to improve their reading skills. We often use 'most any nonfiction book but sometimes YA books, the latter tending to be dark because YAs make bad choices).
To me it is very dark and I find the epilogue to be a sell out.
The protagonist is interesting. He is trying to escape their upstate NY city by obtaining a full ride scholarship on the basis of his football skills on defense and hard work to obtain good marks. His family (and a fair number of classmates) are members of a White supremacist church and I find it interesting to see how such people think (assuming the author is offering authenticity). The chapters are very short and their titles ominous, so far counting down from T-Minus Ten. There are a lot of characters introduced and Mr. Zentner is adept with his plot complications.
The protagonist has thought out his own views and is trying to hew to the straight and narrow. I am surprised that there is so much resentment at their life being so straightened economically, but I suspect that it is the difference between having the ready to pay the utilities and keep food in the house (as my parents did) and barely being able to do so. We readers learn a lot about how the family got into the jackpot where they are today. Even though they profess abhorrent views, we can see how they got there, and how they muddle through. I suspect these are the people who elected Mr. Trump. The protagonist is better than that and striving, so I hope he will blow town forever, attend an Ivy League college (he has offers pending), and overcome his past. Still, this is very dark and I do not much care for it.
(I have considerable experience working with small groups of sixteen and seventeen year olds on an ad hoc basis to improve their reading skills. We often use 'most any nonfiction book but sometimes YA books, the latter tending to be dark because YAs make bad choices).
